Former PUP leader Brian Ervine described Mr Smith as a “very intelligent” man.

“I’m just very, very sorry,” he said. “I found him a very decent human being, and I found him a very forward-thinking human being and he will be a loss, certainly to the Progressive Unionist Party and the loyalist community.

“He was a clear thinker, he was left-of-centre politically, he had a heart for ordinary people, for working-class people, he tried to provide a voice, a voice which had been neglected.”

Mr Ervine told Radio Ulster: “He was also happy enough to stretch over the fence and do business with traditional enemies.”